Chapter 74: Chapter 74: High-speed Spawner

Xue Rui looked at Lin Ruoxi’s innocent expression and suddenly felt that his own thoughts were far too dirty.

"A turkey is a type of bird. Just look it up online and you’ll see," Xue Rui said, pointing to the browser icon.

As Lin Ruoxi looked at the picture of a turkey, her eyes shot wide open. "It’s so big..."

Of course, Xue Rui hadn’t forgotten to teach Lin Ruoxi about "internet safety" either.

In reality, using a computer required a certain amount of know-how.

Otherwise, it wouldn’t be long before the computer was littered with all sorts of ads.

For example: "HD Wallpaper," "Level 999 with a single strike," "If you’re a true bro, come fight me!"

And all sorts of suggestive clickbait articles.

Xue Rui figured that if this kept up, Lin Ruoxi’s pure soul would soon be sullied by the filth of the internet.

’Still, it’s unavoidable...’

’This is how every teenager "grows up."’

"Remember to scroll down when you want to download something. All those cheap-looking banners are fake."

"See? This tiny ’Telecom Download’ link way down here is the real download link."

Xue Rui was teaching Lin Ruoxi earnestly. He didn’t want to come back the next day and find a "P2P junk downloader" on the computer.

"Why... why do they have to trick people?"

Lin Ruoxi didn’t understand. She had assumed the "High-Speed Download" button at the top was the right one.

But Xue Rui demonstrated what happened: clicking it unleashed a torrent of garbage software.

It was a total bait-and-switch, a "high-speed junk-spawner." The garbage software seemed to multiply on its own, one program installing another until a whole heap of it was on the system.

"Because it makes them money," Xue Rui replied casually.

This kind of crude tactic would still be rampant more than a decade later.

Lin Ruoxi didn’t understand the tricks of the trade, but she committed Xue Rui’s instructions to memory.

"Heheh, wanna play a game?" Xue Rui winked.

At that time, online racing and dancing games like QQ Speed and QQ Dancer were all the rage with girls, but he had no idea if Lin Ruoxi would be into them.

But downloading them would be too slow. They might as well just play on 4399.

The two of them started playing the simple classic, Gold Miner.

Lin Ruoxi accidentally grabbed a big rock.

"I... I’m so stupid."

The words "GAME OVER" flashed on the screen.

Lin Ruoxi hung her head, looking guilty. They could have passed that level, but because of her mistake, they had to start all over again.

Xue Rui looked at her oddly. ’This girl is so sensitive,’ he thought. ’It’s just a trivial little game, yet she’s taking it so seriously.’

’On second thought, it seems like Lin Ruoxi puts her all into everything she does.’

"You’re ranked second in our entire grade. If you call yourself stupid, aren’t you just mocking me?"

Xue Rui said, deliberately putting on a stern face.

"I... I didn’t! It’s not like that," Lin Ruoxi said, flustered, rushing to explain herself to Xue Rui.

A wide grin spread across Xue Rui’s face as he pinched Lin Ruoxi’s cheek.

"I’m just messing with you. It’s only a game. So what if we didn’t pass the level?"

’Her cheeks feel a lot better than before,’ Xue Rui thought. ’She’s definitely been eating properly.’

He broke into a smile, like a proud father. ’The kid’s all grown up.’

Then, he subconsciously glanced at Lin Ruoxi’s chest.

He decided he’d spoken too soon. Lin Ruoxi was still too underdeveloped.

"Let’s switch games. Aren’t people in our class playing that farm game where you steal crops?" Xue Rui asked, a little uncertain.

BUZZZ. BUZZZ. BUZZZ.

Xue Rui’s phone suddenly started buzzing.

He picked it up and saw it was a call from Xue Xiaying.

The corner of Xue Rui’s mouth twitched. ’It’s over,’ he thought.

"Hello, Auntie?" Xue Rui answered the phone, his heart pounding.

’Of course he had a guilty conscience.’ He had skipped the evening self-study session, and Xue Xiaying had probably found out.

"Xue Rui! Where are you?!"

Xue Xiaying was standing outside the classroom, glaring darkly at Qiu Mengze.

Qiu Mengze looked mortified. That punk Xue Rui had skipped the evening self-study session without even telling him.

When their homeroom teacher, Xue Xiaying, had asked, he had instinctively covered for Xue Rui, telling her he’d gone to the bathroom.

As a result, Xue Xiaying had actually sent someone to the men’s restroom to check every single stall...

Which was why he was now being punished, forced to stand here with a dictionary balanced on his head.

And the worst part? The girl he liked had walked by and seen the whole thing!

’So humiliating!’ In his heart, he cursed Xue Rui and eight generations of his ancestors.

"Auntie, I’m at an off-campus tutoring session," Xue Rui said with the utmost sincerity.

"You? At a tutoring session?" Xue Xiaying sneered.

’If he needed tutoring, why not ask a teacher? She was a teacher at the school herself. Was there any subject he couldn’t get help with from a teacher? Why would he need to find someone off-campus?’

"Lin Ruoxi, you talk to your homeroom teacher,"

Xue Rui handed the phone to Lin Ruoxi and whispered close to her ear,

"Just tell her you’re tutoring me."

Xue Rui was self-aware enough to know that Xue Xiaying would never believe him, but Lin Ruoxi was a different story.

Lin Ruoxi’s wide eyes were filled with confusion.

’Tutoring?’

’Weren’t we just playing games?’

’It seemed like ever since she met Xue Rui, she’d been doing nothing but lying...’

"Hello... Teach... Teacher Xue. I’m... studying with Xue Rui," Lin Ruoxi said, so nervous she was stuttering.

She was terrified of the teacher finding out, but she couldn’t bring herself to refuse Xue Rui’s request.

The voice on the other end of the line softened. "Lin Ruoxi, are you telling the truth? Xue Rui is actually studying?"

Xue Xiaying was skeptical. ’As if she didn’t know what kind of rascal Xue Rui was.’

’But Lin Ruoxi herself said he was studying, so she really wasn’t sure what to believe.’

’And considering Xue Rui’s behavior these past few days...’

’What if he really was studying?’

She felt she shouldn’t crush a student’s newfound enthusiasm for learning, so she changed her tack. "Where are you two studying?"

After a long pause, Lin Ruoxi answered, "At... my house."

"Your house? Just you and Xue Rui?" Xue Xiaying suddenly grew tense.

’A boy and a girl, at this age, alone in a room together...’

"And Lin Ruoxi’s grandmother," Xue Rui added hastily, taking the phone back.

He walked into the grandmother’s room, handed her the phone, and said with a serious expression,

"Grandma, Xixi’s homeroom teacher is on the phone for a home visit. She wants to ask you a few questions."

The old woman shot Xue Rui an annoyed glance.

Still, she couldn’t be sure if he was telling the truth, so she simply took the phone.

"Is this her teacher from school? This is Lin Ruoxi’s grandmother."

Hearing the elderly voice on the other end, Xue Xiaying instantly felt much more at ease.

’There’s an adult at Lin Ruoxi’s house,’ she thought. ’Xue Rui wouldn’t dare try anything.’

She made some small talk with the grandmother for a few moments before hanging up.

Before leaving, she shot a fierce glare at Qiu Mengze. "Get inside!"

"Okay," Qiu Mengze mumbled sheepishly.

A smile played on Xue Xiaying’s lips. She recalled another teacher mentioning that afternoon that Xue Rui had been paying close attention in class and had even answered a question voluntarily.

Because of her unique situation, it was truly difficult for her to find the right leverage to convince Xue Rui to study.

’Use money as a motivator? Tell him to change his destiny?’

’She had studied for so many years, but wasn’t she still being supported by her own brother, a high school dropout?’

So, upon learning that Xue Rui was taking the initiative to study, Xue Xiaying was in an excellent mood.

"The return of a prodigal son is more precious than gold..."

...

Xue Rui glanced at the time; it was time to head back to the school dorms.

"I’m heading out. You and your grandma should get to bed early," Xue Rui said casually.

Lin Ruoxi immediately rushed to put on her shoes.

"Don’t see me out," Xue Rui chided.

The whole reason he came to her place every day was to make sure nothing happened to her on her commute.

’Her, seeing him out? Wouldn’t that defeat the whole purpose?’

"Mm..." Lin Ruoxi nodded.

Watching the door CLICK shut, Lin Ruoxi felt a pang of reluctance for some reason.

She stood by the window, gazing downstairs until Xue Rui’s figure completely vanished from sight. Only then did she reluctantly turn away.

Lin Ruoxi returned to her room and found it in a mess, with a disorganized pile of books scattered on the floor.

She suddenly remembered Xue Rui saying earlier that he "couldn’t learn" something.

He had seemed really frustrated about it.

"C Programming, MySQL..."

Lin Ruoxi tilted her head. She had never heard of any of these things.

She picked up a book, sat down at the computer, and began searching online.

’If I learn this... maybe I can help him...’